An apparatus for automatically analyzing a specimen, such as blood and body fluids, is conventionally known to dispense a specimen and a reagent into a reaction container to cause a chemical reaction thereof at a predetermined temperature and subsequently optically analyze a reaction liquid. The chemical reaction of the specimen and reagent in the analysis described above takes place in a reaction table having a constant-temperature bath, which is heated close to body temperature, and the temperature control of the constant-temperature bath is extremely important in order to obtain a stable analysis result. As a result, it has been conventional to heat a reagent which is kept cool in a reagent table and subsequently dispense it into a reaction container, and to control the temperature of the constant-temperature bath to be higher than a reaction temperature.
In a case where such an analysis apparatus includes an electrolyte measurement apparatus in addition to biochemical analysis items, a specimen is dispensed into an electrolyte analysis apparatus during electrolyte analysis. Thus, there is a case where there is an empty reaction container among those retained on a reaction table. If there is such an empty reaction container with no reagent or specimen dispensed therein on the reaction table, a reaction temperature of a reaction liquid is likely to change in a reaction container near the empty reaction container. This may result in a lack of accuracy in the analysis results, and therefore, an analysis apparatus is proposed which performs control of dispensing a temperature controlling liquid of a constant-temperature bath into such an empty reaction container (see, for example, Reference 1).
Reference 1: Japanese Laid-Open Publication No. 11-201975